Still four years away, the BMW iNext is already causing consternation, apprehension, and optimism. We think that the BMW iNext will be the next i-car after the long-awaited BMW i8 Roadster/Spyder launches in 2018—or maybe 2019. The iNext is supposed to be an electrified vehicle; last year BMW CEO Harald Krüger said that it will bring "the next generation of electro-mobility to the road." Does that mean totally electric via battery or hydrogen fuel cell, because it doesn't sound like a plug-in hybrid.
Battery-powered electric drive is proven. BMW already has one electric car—the i3—and before the iNext comes out will produce an all-electric X3 and Mini. Perhaps battery technology will advance fast enough for the iNext to rely on future-generation lithium-ions or some other type of battery but if so, the battery people better get cracking because 2021 is only four years away. By then, to carry BMW's flag or wear BMW's halo, we figure the iNext needs to go more than 400 miles on a single tank of electrons and it needs to charge or refuel really quick; otherwise, BMW will already be behind other EV makers.
Fuel cell technology is already here and BMW execs say they can and will do a fuel-cell electric vehicle, but only when the infrastructure can support it. That's a lot of liquid-hydrogen filling stations that need to be built before 2021 if the iNext is to be an FCV.
BMW already has the plug-in hybrid (PIH) technology down pat, and awaits only faster—and wireless—charging and longer battery ranges to make it feasible for a project like the iNext, but doe plug-in hybrids represent the next generation of electro-mobility? We don't know if PIH technology is already too old school for the innovation movers and shakers at BMW.
Glass-half-empty hand wringers fear that self-driving cars—which the iNext will be—will mean driving for fun, pleasure, and excitement is doomed. While that may be the eventual outcome of the self-driving car movement, it won't happen right away. BMW AG Board of Management member for BMW sales and marketing, Dr. Ian Robertson reassured Automotive News Europe editors recently when they queried him on the autonomous iNext.
When asked about a steering wheel and pedals, Robertson replied, "There will be a steering wheel because we want our drivers to be able to choose whether to drive themselves or be driven autonomously. Aside from that, it will be an extremely brave decision to remove the pedals and the steering wheel when, inevitably, you might need them in certain circumstances. I think it's going to be a long time before the regulators are prepared to let cars that cannot be driven by a person onto the streets."
We are reassured by Robertson's comments, but we're still a little confused about the level of autonomous driving of which the iNext will be capable. Earlier this year, BMW's senior engineer for automated driving, Dr. Dirk Wisselmann said that Level 5 cars—those that require no human involvement other than setting a destination—were at least ten years away. Yet a few weeks ago, Elmar Frickenstein, who is BMW's senior vice president of autonomous driving, said that by 2021 BMW would field a car capable of Level, 3, 4, and 5 driving. Since he mentioned 2021, we have to assume he meant the iNext.
But wait, Dr. Robertson just told Automotive News Europe that the iNext only will be Level 4 capable. See why we're confused?
The BMW enthusiast world is in wait-and-see mode concerning the BMW iNext. Things may start to coalesce by 2019 or 2020 at the latest, when BMW probably will have no choice but to bring a heavily camouflaged iNext to the Nürburgring or Sweden or Death Valley to test. Until then, all we have to go on is the BMW Vision Next 100 Concept that was introduced last year, but we expect the iNext will only take some styling cues from that car, not the whole design. Or maybe BMW will surprise us with a radical new design like it did with the i8.
We are looking forward to when BMW will get their stories straight on the iNext's autonomous capability. If we can turn self-driving off when we want, and the car performs like a BMW, but then during boring commutes, long interstate trips, or traffic jams we can switch to a Level 5 "fire-and-forget" mode, we might consider being an early adopter.—Scott Blazey.
[Photo courtesy of BMW AG.]
